For typical DSL service involving one or two wire pairs, the Service Provider would combine POTS (plain old telephone service) and DSL for service deployment. POTS would provide the voice service and the DSL would provide the data and video content. The POTS and DSL services are typically deployed from different telecommunication equipment and locations. POTS is typically deployed from a Central Office facility located up to 18 kft away from the customer. DSL is typically deployed from an outside plant (OSP) equipment cabinet located 1-3 kft from the customer. The POTS and DSL are combined at the customer's facility or the DSL OSP equipment cabinet. See FIG. 1, Prior Art. With transportation costs responsible for up to 10% of a product's price point, many organizations are looking to logistics for growth. Making strategic advances not just in how the organization goes to market, but in how the organization gets to market can enhance customer service, decrease order-to-cash cycle times, reduce payment lead times, minimize taxes, and ultimately increase working capital. In fact, time compression and information accuracy within the transportation function can significantly re-shape the balance sheet.
POTS inherently provides current to power the customer's phone and to determine if the customer was ready to make a telephone call or hang up. This current also provided the additional benefit of maintaining the wire continuity connections (i.e. preventing oxidation) at wire splices or IDC wire connections between the Service Providers facility and the Customer Premise's or residence. The current prevents corrosion from occurring at these wire splices or IDC wire connections, which can be numerous. If any of the wire splices or IDC wire connections oxidizes, the telephone wire loses its ability to reliably transport DSL services. To support their tactical and operational decisions, organizations traditionally use two distinct systems: one to address tactical-planning issues, and one to address operational-planning issues. However, the use of two distinct systems for tactical and operations decisions presents numerous inefficiencies, limitations and disadvantages, due to a lack of or limited interaction between the two systems. It is desirable that the two systems interact with each other, since tactical decisions are necessary for, and place constraints on, operational planning decisions. Furthermore, tactical decisions establish defined resource requirements for operational decisions.
Currently, the customers are abandoning their POT'S for their cell phones. The POTS is either disconnected or not initially deployed, such as with a DSL only service deployment. In either situation, the POTS current is no longer provided. When DSL service trouble calls increased, the Service Provider's identified the problem as oxidation or corrosion at telephone cable wire splices or IDC wire connections. The solution to correct and prevent oxidation or corrosion was to subject the wire splices or IDC wire connections to low DC current (i.e. sealing or wetting current). Attempts have been made to install sealing current equipment at the same location as the DSL equipment or to have the DSL equipment incorporate sealing current functionality. Both attempts were unsuccessful due to space, costs, power consumed, and thermal capabilities, more specifically as follows:
Space: DSL equipment is installed in an outdoor cabinet (called VRAD, Video-Ready Access Device), wherein the VRAD cabinet does not have space to effectively support sealing current generators and injectors.
Cost: The additional cost to provide sealing current generators and injectors on all DSL service would be relatively high.
Power Consumed: The VRAD cabinet's power source may not have the ability to generate sealing current for all DSL services.
Thermal: The VRAD cabinet was designed to support the heat generated from the DSL equipment and other accessories. The added heat from sealing current generators could not adequately be supported.
The following prior art references relate to and/or discuss one or more of the above described issues, and are each herein fully incorporated by reference:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,131,033 entitled Sealing Current Generator for a Telephone Circuit, issued to Reum on Jul. 14, 1992.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,027,587 B2 entitled System and Method for Deriving Sealing Current, issued to Menasco, Jr. on Apr. 11, 2006.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,773,744 B1 entitled System and Method for Terminating Sealing Current, issued to Joffe on Aug. 10, 2010.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,787,614 B2 entitled Sealing Current Terminator for Inhibiting Oxidation and Methods Therefore, issued to Duran et al. on Aug. 31, 2010.